Roberts, 43, has closed the deal to become the poison-apple wielding villain in director Tarsem Singh's adaptation of the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale, Variety reports. As for the Queen's beautiful stepdaughter who befriends dwarves, that role has yet to be cast.

The flick is set to be released in June 2012, six months before a competing project, Snow White and the Huntsman, bows in the theaters.

That other film cast Charlize Theron in the same "Evil Queen" role, with Viggo Mortensen as the titular hunter; the Snow White role has yet to be cast, although Kristen Stewart has been a rumored frontrunner.

"Julia was our first and only choice to play the Queen," Ryan Kavanaugh, CEO of film company Relativity Media, said in a statement. "She is an icon, and we know that she will make this role her own in a way that no one else could."

Variety reports that Roberts' version will be a modern retelling of the story, featuring "more comedy and adventure."